This blog is about family, including those in my family tree, the primary focus, but also the family of faith, the family of community, and ultimately the family of man. It is a journey of discovery: Who they were, What they did (and Why), and When, Where, and How they lived.

The decree of beatification of 19 martyrs killed in Algeria in the 1990s – including the seven monks of Tibhirine – could be signed by the end of January. These are the monks depicted in the marvelous film, "Of Gods and Men".

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from The American ConservativeRIGHT-CENTER BIAS

How Europe Built Its Own Funeral Pyre, Then Leapt In
The single most significant issue of our time is not North Korea’s drive to develop long-range nuclear missiles. It is not the threat posed to Europe by the Russian land power or the threat posed to America’s Asian dominance by Chinese sea power. It is not Iran’s growing Mideast influence, nor the ongoing investigation into Russian meddling in U.S. elections and possible “collusion” by the Trump campaign. No, the defining issue of our day is mass immigration into the nations of Western heritage. This growing inflow threatens to remake those nations and overwhelm their cultural identity. This is the issue that played the largest role in getting Donald Trump elected. It drove Britain’s Brexit vote. It is roiling the European continent, mounting tensions inside the EU and driving a wedge between the elites of those nations and their general populations.

ANKARA: Turkey’s religious affairs state agency came under heavy criticism on Thursday from the main opposition party after it reportedly said girls as young as nine could marry under Islamic law.The Diyanet religious affairs directorate said on Tuesday the minimum age for girls to marry was nine, while for boys it was 12, according to Turkish media including Hurriyet daily quoting the agency’s official website.

Philip Morris Makes ‘New Year’s Resolution’ to Quit Smoking
Philip Morris International has taken out full-page ads in a variety of UK publications, though it has yet to spread its message further west. Its message is clear: “Our ambition is to stop selling cigarettes in the UK,” the ad says. “It won’t be easy.” It says that the “best action” the approximately 7.6 smokers in the United Kingdom can take is to quit smoking altogether. While the company’s marketing department suggests that “many will succeed,” Philip Morris International (PMI) has decided to do their part by offering to replace traditional cigarettes with electronic ones, as well as “heated tobacco” products. These alternative Reduced-Risk Products, or RRPs, are part of PMI’s pursuit of a new “vision” for a “common-sense approach for public health.”

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from EUobserver

Macron vows law against fake news
French president Emmanuel Macron is seeking to give authorities powers to remove or block social media content deemed as fake news during election seasons. Speaking to reporters on Wednesday (3 January), Macron said the plan is needed to protect liberal democracies following Russian-led attempts to thwart his own presidential campaign last year.

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from The Heritage Foundation

RIGHT BIAS, MIXED, think tank in Washington, D.C

Once Again, North Korea Is Reaching Out to the South. We Should Be Receptive, but Wary.
It has become tradition among North Korea watchers to dissect Pyongyang’s annual New Year’s Day speech for clues of potential policy changes. Each year, some experts interpret benign-sounding passages as indicating North Korean reform or greater willingness to engage diplomatically with Washington or Seoul. Others interpret passages that extol North Korea’s military accomplishments as threats of imminent attack on the U.S. or its allies. To get the full picture, it is important that we assess each benign or bombastic passage within the broader context of the speech, as well as in comparison with speeches in previous years.

1 Year in Office: Trump Keeps Defying His Critics
Pince the day Donald Trump was elected president in November 2016, the Dow Jones industrial average has risen by some 35 percent, making the last 14 months one of the greatest bull market runs in history. Some $6 trillion of wealth has been created for Americans — which is very good news for the 55 million Americans with 401(k) plans, the 25 million or so who have IRAs, and another 20 million with company pension plans and employee stock ownership plans. The left was certain exactly the opposite would happen with a Trump presidency. When it comes to Trump's critics, so far almost all have been dead wrong.

"Internet of Things" Devices Have Their Security Risks. How Regulators Should Address Them.
The government should focus on making sure its own systems are secure before attempting to impose security regulations on others. The internet of things and other emerging technologies will be beneficial for American consumers, even as they give rise to threats that are not currently foreseeable. Congress should avoid attempting to solve potential problems with slow and static regulations.

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from Psephizo (Blog)

The one thing women leaders in the Bible had in common
Marg Mowczko writes: At the moment, I’m preparing a message on 1 Timothy 2:12. For one of my points, I have made a list of godly Bible women who ministered to men. As I was making the list I saw something I had not noticed before: all the women, except for one,[1] are described in Scripture as being prophetesses or having a prophetic gift.

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from The Roman Anglican (blog)

An Italian celebration of Christmas
Nowadays, not many are aware that Christmas does not end on December 25th, but it goes on for twelve nights! To say the truth we can say it lasts until Candlemass, the Feast of the Presentation of Jesus to the Temple at the end of Epiphany Season, we could say a continuation of Christmastide. Tomorrow the twelve days will end with the Adoration of the Child Jesus by the Magi, a very important continuation of the Nativity where the humble community of shepherds is joined by three kings bringing gifts to the holy child. In Italy, this feast or better, "Epiphany Eve" has always been just as important as Christmas culturally, and Italian children not only have to wait for Santa Claus or Father Christmas but also for a lovely elderly lady called "La Befana" (after "Epifania" = Epiphany).